Episode Details

Jen Perry has spent her career on both sides of the creative table.

She came up as a creative at big network agencies, then moved client-side, before going on to build and lead creative teams at smaller shops.

At the time we recorded, she was executive creative director at Vagrants, and has since taken on a creative role with BJ's Wholesale.

In this episode, we talk about what makes creative work good no matter the format, and why she banned finished designs until her team could show her the idea behind them.

We also get into how bringing clients closer to the creative process builds the trust you need for bigger, bolder work.

We also get into the less glamorous side of creative leadership.

Jen explains why creatives rarely admit they're overloaded, and how her partners changed once she moved into leadership.

She also shares how she handles the loneliness that comes with being the boss, including building a personal board of directors.

In this episode:

• Jen's path from big-agency creative to client side to building creative teams
• Why "that's not my job" doesn't exist on a small team
• How to define good work when a 15-second spot and a feature film are so different
• AI, the backlash against generic content, and the pull back toward analog
• "Words on a page," or why the idea has to come before the layout
• Getting clients comfortable with risk through incremental trust, and always bringing a range
• Pulling back the curtain on the creative process to reduce anxiety and build ownership
• Why creatives need to understand the pressures their clients face
• Finding what a client actually needs, which is rarely the first thing they say
• Teaching both sides how to give and receive feedback
• A voiceover story about how the way you ask a question shapes the answer
• Creatives don't raise their hand, so tracking workload becomes a way to prevent burnout
• How your partners change when you step into creative leadership
• Loneliness at the top and building a personal board of directors
• What's next: branded content that lives in culture instead of feeling like an ad